Written by Loong Tse Min & Joseph Chin
Friday, 08 January 2010 07:45
KUALA LUMPUR: Stocks on Bursa Malaysia could continue to see continued profit taking on Friday, Jan 8, but the FBM KLCI is expected to stay above the 1,290 level, supported by the better overnight closing on Wall Street.
The FBM KLCI futures fell 3.5 points to 1,293 on Thursday while the FBM KLCI closed 1.75 points down at 1,291.42.
On Wall Street, the Dow and the S&P 500 rose on Thursday after Bank of America and General Electric rallied on positive broker comments, but investors were cautious a day before the release of key monthly non-farm payrolls data.
The Dow Jones industrial average gained 33.18 points, or 0.31 percent, to end at 10,606.86. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index added 4.55 points, or 0.40 percent, to 1,141.69. But the Nasdaq Composite Index slipped 1.04 points, or 0.05 percent, to 2,300.05.
Stocks to watch on Friday include PLANTATION [] stocks which rallied on Thursday after the upgraded by CIMB Equities Research. However, the CPO third-month futures fell RM72 to RM2,630.
On the list of stocks which could see trading interest are Ho Hup CONSTRUCTION [], Petra PErdana, Alliance Financial Group and EON Capital. Also on the watch list are GREEN PACKET BHD [] and KNM GROUP BHD [].
In Ho Hup, Datuk Low Tuck Choy, who is fighting the management of the company led by Datuk Vincent Lye, has proposed an alternative regularisation plan to revive the construction outfit.
In the 18-page statement, Low Chee & Sons Sdn Bhd and Choo Soo Har, who hold a combined 25 million Ho Hup shares have called for for an EGM to be held on Feb 4.
The proposals include the disposal of non core assets, development of strategic lands, joint ventures for new property developments and acquire niche land bank for future development.
On Thursday, Ho Hup shares fell the most in one day in recent years, down as much as 72 sen and saw RM73.44 million erased from its market capitalisation.
The share price plunge was triggered by investors' worries about the company's fundamentals and whether the shares had been overbought due to the ensuing tussle between two shareholders.
Offshore marine services provider PETRA PERDANA BHD []'s executive chairman and CEO Tengku Datuk Ibrahim Petra issued a statement in response to recent media reports concerning transactions that were concluded in 2009 and the actions of certain shareholders and senior executives of the company to remove the directors at an EGM to be convened on Feb 4, 2010.
In AFG, ivestors, fretting over the lack of clarity about the status of Alliance Bank Malaysia Bhd's top management, including its CEO Datuk Bridget Lai, sold down AFG shares.
In EON Cap, the banking group appointed Goldman Sachs as its international financial adviser and Ethos & Company as its Malaysian financial adviser to assist the company with its strategic review.
While the focus will be to build sustainable returns from its core businesses, consumer and SME banking. It said EON Bank will also focus on pursuing new business opportunities in areas such as investment banking, advisory services, asset management, treasury as well as bancassurance.
The latest development comes abut after Hong Leong Group has received official approval to hold talks with EON Capital shareholders to buy into the group.
Green Packet, which provides wireless Internet services, signed an agreement with China’s ZTE Corp to provide it with access to a US$150 million (RM505.5 million) credit line to help finance its WiMAX rollout in Malaysia, Singapore and beyond.
KNM Group Bhd has secured a RM143 million contract from Impress Ethanol Co Ltd to build a bioethanol plant in Thailand.
The contract involves the engineering, procurement, construction and commissioning of a 200,000 litres per day cassava-based bioethanol plant in Chachaengsao, Thailand.